Flames and Forgiveness
by clearspring2009
Summary: Zuko is the banished prince cursed to chase the Avatar, but when he meets the girl he used to love, things begin to change. He begins to question his loyalties toward his father, and she shows him what he's been missing. Zuko/OC
1. Chapter 1

**First Avatar: The Last Airbender story! Hope you guys like it! R&R!**

Katara heard the lightning bolt that shot through the air and she knew where it was going and that it was going to hit. Using waterbending, she whipped up a wave and willed it to go to Aang. She caught him, but she knew it was hopeless. Aang's lifeforce was fading fast.

Azula's lips curled into a wicked smile just as the wall on her left gave way. Huge flames licked the cavern walls and when the dust settled, Iroh stood in the gaping hole. Behind him was a beautiful girl in Earth Kingdom garments. She was a girl from Zuko's past.

Zuko knew she was coming. He had been having dreams. Dreams of the days they had been together. Her tinkling laugh always found its way into his head. When he was forced to leave the Fire Nation, he never said goodbye. It had been haunting him, even though he tried not to think about it. He tried to think about Mai, but compared to Julie, Mai always seemed so lifeless and... bored. It had been more than three years since he had seen her, and looking at the girl next to his uncle, she seemed so different. The way she held her head seemed so much more confident, and for a second, he was afraid, afraid that she wouldn't be the same person he used to love.

Julie had been waiting to see him. She had missed him so much when he left. She remembered crying herself to sleep for a few nights. He hadn't even said goodbye, and that broke her heart, but she told herself every night that he would come back and they would be together.

She still missed him, but over the past few days, she had asked herself if she really felt that way. When she was staying with Aang, Katara told her that Zuko was a different person. He wasn't himself anymore. A lot could change in three years.

Katara's voice echoed in Julie's head. _He hurt us_, the waterbender said, _he's a killer_. That wasn't the Zuko she knew. And that wasn't the Zuko she loved. But she had to see for herself. She had to know that he was safe. That he might still feel the same way about her. He might love her again. But the man standing next to Princess Azula could not have been Zuko. He had a terrible scar puckering the skin over his left eye, and his eyes were filled with emotions. Bitterness, anger, pain, determination.

The man in front of her was not Zuko. No. Zuko was bold and fierce, but he was also loving and kind, and he wanted so much to do the right thing. Aang was lying. Zuko was not here.

Iroh spoke to the Katara. "You've got to get out of here! I'll hold them off as long as I can!" Katara nodded and spoke to Julie

"Come on! We have to go." Julie shook her head.

"I'm staying here with Iroh. You have to get away with Aang!"

Turning away. She faced the crowd of Dai Li Earthbenders and her gaze fell on Zuko. Her voice wavered for a second, but she made it firm again.

"Go, Katara!"

Katara willed the water to shot up and take her to the top with Aang. She didn't know what Julie had gotten herself into. Something nagged at her from the back of her mind. Julie was acting like someone she knew, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Shaking her head and dispelling the strange thoughts, she let Sokka help her get Aang onto Appa and together, they sailed away into the night. Looking back at the shrinking cave in the distance, she felt tears rush down her cheeks. She hoped that somehow, they would be alright. Somehow, they would make the world better again.

Meanwhile down in the cavern, Iroh and Julie were back to back facing row after row of Dai Li. Julie waited until Katara and Aang were out of sight. Then she turned to Zuko.

"I loved you..." she said.

Tears flowed down her cheeks and through her eyelashes, she saw Zuko look down.

"I always waited for you to come back. I always waited for you to come and tell me that everything was going to be alright. Then, I heard about you. About how you had terrorized the Avatar and his friends. How you had followed them across the world, hurting them, hurting other people." her voice faltered and she turned away. "I don't know you anymore. I don't love you."

Zuko was in pain. His emotions were tearing him apart. He wanted to have him crown back, but he loved Julie. Or did he? He loved the pretty headstrong girl. He didn't know if he loved this girl. She was different. Angry, which Julie had hardly ever been. She was hurt inside, and he wanted, so much to hug her. To make her stop crying, and tell her that everything would be alright. He would make everything alright. He wanted to comfort her, but now, he didn't know how. She didn't care about him. She said it herself. She didn't love him.

So be it.

Zuko's face turned angry.

"You should know! Don't they tell stories about it? How my father banished me and said that he would only take me back if I brought back the Avatar? I need him, Julie. I needed him to see you again. Don't you care? I need my throne and my honor." Then he added to himself, "And my father's love."

Iroh was speechless. He had never known! Three long years together and his nephew had never bothered to tell him about the girl? He always thought that Zuko was missing a part of him. It certainly wasn't his father, so maybe it was this girl. Julie.

Azula turned to the Dai Li agent beside her, who gave a hand signal to the rest of the agents. They all fell into stance.

But Iroh spoke in a surprisingly calm voice, "There will be no need for that."

Julie added, "We surrender."

Zuko watched, helpless, as his uncle and the love of his life were both brutally handcuffed and dragged away. He wanted so much to get back to his father, but he felt a tinge of regret. He was so confused, but he knew that deep down, he loved Julie. He had to do something, but he had to remain loyal to his father. He would not be banished a second time.

And then he noticed that as Julie was taken away, that she never looked back at him.

**Guess what? I smushed a watermelon ****over the weekend**** a week or two ago! It slipped out of my hands and – WHAM! It splattered all over the driveway. XD My dad thinks I'm a klutz. He won't even let me carry the eggs to the refrigerator. Come on, dad. Geez. **

**Review please! Reviews make me oh-so-happy! They're like Starbursts. You can't get enough, and they're very yummy. Ok, maybe not yummy, but you get the point. Unless you don't like Starbursts… THEY MAKE ME HAPPY, OKAY? So you should review!**

**Also, I'm looking for a new name for Julie, because Julie obvious isn't an Avatar name. Hehe. It's one of the names that popped into my head that I liked, so it's here. PM me if you have any ideas! **


	2. Chapter 2

**I figured I should start posting disclaimers, so here it is – **

**DISCLAIMER: If I owned Avatar, Mai would be ****history****! Zuko would be madly in love with Julie (whichever name – as you can see I made changes) and that would be that :)**

Julie and Iroh were dragged into a tank and then transferred into a prison cell of a Fire Navy ship. After a few tense moments, Iroh spoke.

"So you knew my nephew?"

Julie looked out the bars of the cell. "Yes. I knew your nephew."

Iroh watched as she pulled out a beautiful necklace. It was a carved red stone hanging from a thin golden chain. She looked into the distance, as if remembering something from the past. "I knew your nephew. And I was going to marry him." Iroh gasped. He had never known. Zuko had never mentioned this girl to him. He had been planning to marry her and he hadn't breathed a word. Ever.

Julie clutched the beautiful necklace in her hand. It was carved with two tiny dragons curling around the Fire Nation symbol. After Zuko left, she wore it every day to remember him. She had always fallen asleep fingering it, and she promised herself that someday, somehow, he would come back for her. But now, she wasn't so sure if she wanted to be with him.

After at least a few days of sailing, Julie was sick to her stomach. They had only been given moldy bread and dirty water to eat and drink for the past few meals and she was hungry. Most of all, she was afraid of what would happen when they got to the Fire Nation.

One day, she just had to ask Iroh about it. "What do you think will happen when we reach the Fire Nation?" Iroh was busy eating his lump of bread, but he replied around it. "We'll both be thrown into The Dragon's Gate Prison. It's carved into the side of a mountain, and one of the highest security prisons you will find in the Fire Nation."

Julie looked out between the bars, wishing that all of this had never happened. That Zuko had never been banished, never committed the horrible crimes that he had for the past few years. That there was no war. That the world would be at peace with itself. She felt so confused, and so betrayed. So hurt, angry, and just so sad. She wanted to be with her mother again, and she wanted somebody to love her. She wanted to have somebody to love, too.

That night, Julie looked up at the ceiling while Iroh snored away. She thought about the day when Zuko gave her Takeshi, her dragon-snake. It had been a cold wintery day...

Julie stood in the garden on the roof of her house, overlooking Flying Dragon Street. The wind bite at her shoulders, but she was still happy. She was always happy when she saw Zuko. But today, he was late.

It seemed like hours after she saw his tall figure in the street. He wore a dark red cloak, and when he looked at her, the wind stopped blowing. In a few seconds, he was climbing onto the garden. His honey-colored eyes glittered with excitement. "I brought something for you," he whispered, taking something out from underneath his robe. "His name is Takeshi." When he opened his hands, Julie saw the most beautiful creature in the world. It was a tiny red snake with wings, curled up in Zuko's palm. The little snake blinked and snorted and small wisps of smoke curled up from his nose. He unfurled his wings and stood there, blinking at her.

Zuko broke the silence - "I hope you like him. He's a dragon-snake." Julie looked up at him. "I love him." she replied, and pulled him into a kiss.

Takeshi - it meant warrior, and soon the little dragon-snake became a fierce fighter. But to Julie, he would always be the beautiful little creature she had seen five years ago on that wintery day.

Julie blinked and sat up. She wanted to be back there. Back to the place she knew. Where she was still loved.

She remembered that warm feeling that spread through her body when their lips met. He made the wind stop. But here, in her cold metal cell, there was no warm feeling. She was so alone. Touching the sash at her waist, she took a deep breath and slipped it off. She raised it to her mouth and breathed fire onto it, curling the red tendrils around and around the sash. After murmuring a few words, the sash changed shape. It was a little red and gold snake - Takeshi. He yawned and stretched his wings, nuzzling Julie. She smiled for the first time since she was imprisoned and stroked his head.

"I missed you." she said.

Takeshi raised his wings and with one swoop, landed on Julie's shoulder. He curled himself snugly around her neck and promptly fell asleep, his warm scales making the cold night comfortable again. Julie smiled and looked off into the distance.

Soon she fell into a fitful sleep filled with memories of the past.

On the deck of the ship, Zuko stood looking out across the waves that crashed against the metal hull of the ship. The moon shined down, turning black waves into silver puddles. In four days, they would be arriving back at the Fire Nation port. And he would be welcomed as a hero. But did he really want to? He thought about Julie, stick in the prison cells below deck. Was she thinking about him? Probably not. She didn't care about him anymore. But try as he might, Zuko could not stop thinking about her.

There were footsteps behind him. It was Mai. She wrapped her arms around him.

"Aren't you cold?" she asked, in her normal monotone. It was so different from Julie's ringing voice. He missed that voice, and wondered if she would ever speak to him again. "Zuko?" Mai asked, when he didn't reply. "Are you okay?"

Zuko looked away. "I've got a lot on my mind. It's been so long. Over three years since I was home. I wonder what's changed. I wonder how I've changed."

His girlfriend frowned. "I just asked you if you were cold. I didn't ask for your whole life story." She smiled and turned his face towards her, but Zuko pulled away. "I can't, Mai. It's too confusing."

They stood there looking at the ocean for a while, until Zuko turned around.

"Goodnight, Mai." he said, and walked down to his room.

It was so different from the Fire Navy ship he had been living in for the past three years. Azula's ship was bigger, and more lavishly decorated. Suited for the princess, though Azula couldn't care less about how the rooms looked.

Zuko pushed open the door to his room. It was big, and filled with red and gold tapestries. A shallow trench ringed the room, filled with fire. There was a large bed in one corner, covered with silk sheets. The prince fell onto the bed. It was late already, but his mind couldn't stop running. He tossed and turned.

Somewhere in the early morning, he woke up, his chest heaving, sweat dripping down his forehead. He had one of those old nightmares. Where he watched, unable to move as his mother pleaded for his help. She was sucked down the dark hallway, and he heard his father's booming voice. "You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher. Zuko saw a burst of fire, and then a stinging pain on the left side of his face, like red hot needles plunging into his skin. Soon, there was darkness.

Back in his room, he looked around. Instinctively touching the ruined skin around his left eye, he groaned and lay down again. There was no way he would fall asleep now.

**Like it? REVIEW! I'm not a mind reader so I don't know what you're thinking, though I am pretty psychic. Anyone else have dreams that tell the future? You see, I once had this dream that my fish died, and then a few days later, it died. I freaked out. POOR FISHY! **

**RIP David Fish, I will always remember you. **

**REVIEW! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Did you know that they make gloves for feet? It's a little something called barefoot running. Crazyness. They look like the half-socks my mom gets when she wears flat. LOLs. **

That morning, Julie and Iroh were both chained up and transferred to The Dragon's Gate. From the tiny window of the tank she was in, Julie could make out the shape of the prison. It was just as Iroh said, dug into the side of a huge mountain. She could see the guards pacing along the top of the gate like little ants.

The prison cells there were just as dirty as the ones aboard Azula's ship, but at least they were bigger. Julie was separated from Iroh and thrown into an isolated cell. The guard slammed the door behind her and walked away, leaving her all alone.

Takeshi uncoiled himself from Julie wrist, where he had been hiding during the journey. He was growing again, Julie noticed. Soon he would be almost three feet long. Almost full grown. She watched as he scared the elephant rats off. They squeaked loudly and dashed into the shadows, their little trunks waving in panic. Satisfied that there were no more little critters, Takeshi flew back and curled himself around Julie's shoulders.

Zuko, meanwhile, was given dress robes to change into for the welcoming ceremony. He was also given a heavy shoulder pad that weighted him down. He hated that. It made him feel sluggish and, well, it was pretty hard to firebend in. Just because he was so frustrated and angry, he summoned all of the fire from the trench in his room and threw it into the wall. It created a giant brown scorch mark. It stared at Zuko disapprovingly like an eye.

Scowling, and not feeling any better than he did before, Zuko went off to the deck of the ship for the welcoming.

"Your Princess Azula, clever and beautiful, disguised herself as the enemy and entered the Earth Kingdom's capital. In Ba Sing Se she found her brother, Zuko, and together, they faced the Avatar. And the Avatar fell, and the Earth Kingdom fell!" Lo and Li raised their arms.

Zuko found himself feeling even more disappointed. This wasn't how he wanted his return to be. He wanted his father to be here to welcome him back with honor. He wanted to see how proud his father would be, his son finally coming back after proving himself. But did he really prove himself?

Azula had told him that he earned back his own honor. For once, she sounded like Uncle Iroh. _No, not Uncle Iroh_, he thought frantically. His uncle was probably in the Dragon's Gate by now, doomed to rot in the dark cells. All because of him. But he had to.

_It was the right thing to do_, a voice within him whispered. Zuko shivered in spite of the warm sun. _You are the rightful crown prince, are you not?_ The voice continued – _Iroh was just a crazy old man_. Zuko found himself agreeing with the dark voice. But then, there was another voice. It was lighter, and sounded a bit like his mother. _What about Julie? Are you just going to let her die in that filthy prison? You loved her, Zuko. You can't do that. _As angry as he was, Zuko had to admit, he wasn't just going to let her die.

Iroh sat against the wall of the cell, meditating. He concentrated on making his breath slow and even. It was the breath that made firebenders powerful, and he was a master at controlling it. But as he emptied his mind, the events of that day in Ba Sing Se came back to him. Zuko was so lost, but he refused the help that was offered to him. If only there was a way to open his eyes to the real world and his ability to control his own destiny.

He always thought that his father would be the one to offer him his honor. Iroh loved Zuko too much to tell him that in reality, his father did not love him. His little brother did not feel any love. He had come close to telling, but that would hurt Zuko too much.

Ever since they were children, Ozai had been serious and cruel. Azulon had seen this as the mark of a true Fire Lord. Iroh had always been content with what he had, but to Azulon, this was a weakness. His eldest son was a fool. Still, he stuck to the old traditions and prepared to pass the crown on to Iroh, but Ozai intervened. If not for Ursa who only wanted her son to be safe, Iroh would be Fire Lord and the war would be over. The old general sighed. Fate is a funny thing.

Azula swept her gaze over the soldiers and citizens gathered on the Royal Port. Yes, the victory in Ba Sing Se was a great occasion, but she had a feeling that the Fire Nation had not completely won. There was still something wrong. And she was just the person to fix it.

When she hit the Avatar with lightning, she felt all of his power disappear. But now, it was back. She could feel that he was not dead. He was still alive and well, somewhere in hiding, and she would not be to blame for this failure. Azula snuck a glance at Zuko, who also appeared deep in thought. She smiled slightly, the gears turning inside her head. Someone else would get the blame when the Avatar reappeared.

For now, she was going to wait until there was news of his sighting. She had secret ships patrolling the oceans, looking for anything suspicious. When the he was found, she would make sure to end him, once and for all. That little boy and his friends have eluded her for too long. Then, she would return as a true hero, and father would be pleased.

**I know, short chapter. I suck at long chapters because well, I end up running out of things to write about and if I add too many events, it seemed like I stuffed too much stuff into the chapter… **

**Thanks so much to all of my readers. And especially the reviewers! So considerate of you guys :) Reviews just make my day! *hint hint***


	4. Chapter 4

**I am so sorry I haven't posted. Still sticking with the name Julie. Grrs. Please PM me with any name ideas you might have. Pleases! **

**I'm sure you'll be mucho-happy with this chapter. I have a huge long one coming up in a while. Yays!**

**Disclaimer: Do I really need this? *insert Mai voice* I do not own Avatar… **

**Anyways… ACTION! **

Prince Zuko walked silently down the hallway of the Dragon's Gate. The guard there immediately got up to block his way.

"Stop where you are."

Zuko was clearly not in a good mood. To the guard's surprise, he ripped off the hood of his cloak, revealing a face with a telltale scar. The guard's mouth fell open. "Prince Zuko?" The prince smirked. "I'm going in for a visit. You're gonna stand guard here, and NO ONE is going to know about this." He turned on his heel and went to find his uncle.

Meanwhile, Julie was having trouble sleeping. It wasn't exactly easy to fall asleep on a chunk of metal, but there was something bothering her. Something almost calling out to her. She could feel someone walking down the hallway. It wasn't a guard. The guards felt weaker. This mystery person had a strong fire within him.

Straining, she heard the last person she expected in this cold prison - Prince Zuko. Maybe she didn't love him, but that didn't mean she didn't care.

She was not going to sit in a filthy dungeon waiting for her old boyfriend to destroy the Avatar and bring down the world that she knew. She was definitely not going to do that. Instead, she was going to help. She was going to help Zuko realize what he's supposed to do - help the Avatar.

Julie knew she could have escaped long ago, but there was no reason for her to. There had been nowhere for her to go after she left the prison. But now, there was.

She summoned Takeshi again. Holding the dragon-snake close, she whispered "Taki - I need you to unlock this door." Takeshi flew outside the cell's bars and breathed a small column of fire into the lock. It sprung open instantly. Julie waited for a second, making sure that no one had heard the door open. No guards came, so she let Takeshi settle around her shoulders, closed the door, and went off to find her prince.

It wasn't hard. Just follow the yelling. Julie stole through the prison halls and stopped at large iron door. It was General Iroh's cell. Inside, she could hear Zuko yelling at the top of his lungs. She caught some snatches of his speech.

"- a fool for not joining me… You're not going to say anything?" Julie felt her heart tear. He sounded like a little boy - so lost and afraid and confused. She wanted to help, but she didn't know her feelings for him. It was true, he had changed, but he wanted to be good. At least, she hoped he wanted to be good.

There came a moment of silence, and Julie slipped into the shadows, waiting for him. She calmed herself, willing her breath to slow down. Zuko stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. He was furious, and almost blasted the wall of the prison with fire. Fuming, he slipped the hood of the cloak back on, when he was aware of someone watching him. Who could it be?

"Show yourself!" he demanded, but the only thing he heard was his voice, echoing down the metal corridors. Great. Now he was seeing things. Or at least feeling them. Maybe it was Julie, haunting him. He pounded the wall with his fist, making a decent sized dent in the process. He was prince and servants did anything he wanted them to do. Mai loved him. His father was proud of him. So what were these things that he was feeling?

No matter what he did, Zuko felt sad. There was no hiding that. He could order a bunch of fruit tarts with rose petals and still feel sad. Where did all of his satisfaction go?

He just wanted this to be over. Maybe he should leave the palace. There was no home for him. He was always destined to be the banished prince. Even though he had just helped bring down Ba Sing Se, he still felt unwelcome in the red walls of the palace.

Zuko fell to his knees, sobbing quietly. All of the pain, anger, and sadness that had been pent up inside him poured out in a hail of tears and words.

"What have I done? I have no honor here. No family. No love. Everyone hates me." Hiding in the shadows, Julie was shocked. Shocked to hear the prince cry, to hear him sound so vulnerable, so _human_. So there, that night, she made a decision. A decision that she knew she would not regret.

Out of the darkness, came a voice. A voice like water splashing over pebbles in a river. "Prince Zuko", Julie murmured. Zuko looked up, the emotions on his face morphing from desperation to one of hope. "Julie?" he asked, almost afraid of it being a dream.

His long lost love stepped out of the shadows. Up close, she seemed so different, but also the same girl he had loved before. She still had those warm chocolate eyes, flecked with gold, and that small smile. But she was tired, too. She had circles under her eyes, showing nights without sleep, and all she was wearing was a tattered gray tunic covered with stains.

He didn't know what to think. After almost four years apart from each other, he throws her into a dungeon; and then she comes back? This was all a dream. He was tired, after all.

"I missed you, Zuko," Julie said as she stepped up to him, looking into his liquid gold eyes. They swirled and she could feel herself falling into them. She loved those eyes. Zuko's voice seemed to fail him, but he managed to croak, "I missed you, too." This was not a dream.

They were both unsure of their feelings, but Julie knew she wanted to help him, and Zuko knew he wanted to be with her.

She kissed him lightly on the lips, and he wrapped his arms around her, resting his cheek on her forehead. And just for a second, everything seemed to make sense.

Zuko snuck her out of The Dragon's Gate that night and brought her to his room. There was no other place he'd be sure she was safe, and to be honest, he was pretty sure she didn't care where she was. She looked tired.

Julie's mind was in a state of utter confusion. Did she love him or not? She wanted to, but she wasn't sure she could, so she took all of those thoughts, dumped them into an imaginary chest, locked it, and threw it into the back of her mind. Right now, things were too confusing to sort out. She didn't care. She was happy. The other things could wait until later.

**Yay! They are together again! So happy *sighs romantically* **

**I typed nonstop because I really had to get this up. Sorry for short chapter, the happiness makes up for it! And I posted another chapter with it to make up for the shortness. Hope you guys like it, maybe I went too fast? **

**Thank you all so much for reading. You guys make me so happy! **


	5. Chapter 5

**R&R please! Reviews make me so happy. And you want me to be happy, don't you?**

Zuko let Julie into his room before going off into the dark hall to get something. He returned with a red silk nightgown for her.

Julie slipped into the washroom and gasped. It was huge and, well, fit for the prince. There was a huge black marble tub in one corner, and all kinds of fluffy red towels. A tall black sink stood against the wall. And of course, there was plenty of red and gold. For a second, she wondered if the faucet of the sink was solid gold.

After washing up and changing into the comfy gown, she went back into Zuko's room. He was already sitting on the bed, waiting.

She slipped under the sheets, whispering "Goodnight, Zuko."

Zuko smiled. He never thought this would happen.

"Goodnight, Julie."

He kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes, falling asleep in his arms.

_Castles they might crumble, _

_Dreams may not come true,_

_But you will never be alone,_

_Because I will always, always love you._

**I have an inability to write long chapters. But it was so mushy wasn't it? *in a sing song voice* Mushy mushy mushy :) Happy! Yay! Thought it was appropriate to include lyrics from an amazing song my Plumb – In Your Arms. I know, epic shortness. Next next chapter is like almost 3,000 words. Look forward to it! **


	6. Chapter 6

***Gasps* What is this? A LONG chapter? OMG! **

**Yes, my friends, I have finally written a long chapter. More than 2,000 words! In truth, I had this for a while. I wrote it because I was bored a**_** long longgg **_**time ago. It's just so fluffy that I had to put it up! Maiko lovers, BEWARE! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar. geez. **

Julie awoke to find Zuko watching her, propped up on one elbow. His honey-colored eyes stared at her intently, full of love and something else. Longing?

"You're so beautiful when you're asleep," he murmured, touching her cheek.

Julie gave a small smile and ran her fingers through her tangled hair. Ugh. She really needed to visit the spa. Making a metal note of that, she touched Zuko's hand.

"Good morning, Prince Zuko."

They shared a short kiss before they were interrupted by a series of knocks at the door. A voice followed the knocks.

"Prince Zuko?"

The prince grumbled and slid off the bed, pulling Julie behind him. "Come in.", he replied. Immediately, a wave of servants poured in offering the prince a million things.

"Orange slices, Prince Zuko?"

"How about a hot towel?"

"Fresh fruit tarts!"

Zuko weaved through the servants, taking only a hot towel to wipe his face. He glanced at Julie, who was surrounded by another gaggle of servants. She was taking a bite out of the fruit tart.

"Mmmm. You've got to try this!"she said as she caught sight of Zuko.

The fruit tart servant hurried to catch up with the prince. Zuko had to admit, the tart tasted good, but to tell the truth, he was uncomfortable at having all of the people catering to his every need. They had lives, too, after all.

He sighed. These thoughts had crossed his mind often, ever since he had arrived back at the palace. Maybe that was why he felt like a stranger. Nobility shouldn't be off worrying about the lives of their servants. Pushing the troubling thoughts from his mind, he turned to Julie, and then to one of the servants standing attentively at the door.

"Bring my friend a robe." The servant hurried away and returned with a group of women that Zuko recognized as his mother's old companions. They were carrying a flowing crimson robe of glowing silk. Jin, the nicest of the women, took Julie's arm and led her to another room to change.

Zuko remember Jin. She had always been nice to him, whereas the other women seldom paid attention to him. On holidays, she always gave him his favorite candies - fire gummies. On other days, she snuck him extra bread from the kitchens to feed turtleducks in the courtyard pond.

Julie followed Jin and the other women to a room elaborately decorated for a Fire Nation lady. Red banners with the Fire Nation insignia fluttered down from the ceiling. There was a vanity table with small bottles of makeup, as well as a chest of jewelry and a huge wardrobe filled with beautiful robes made of shimmering silk.

She froze and stared at the huge room. Growing up in a small house on the poorer side of her town, she had never seen such a grand room.

Jin tugged on her arm gently and gestured for her to go behind a white silk screen to change. She handed Julie a pale gold under dress that slid softly around her shoulders. Then Julie slipped on the crimson robe. The dress had a black collar and golden lining around the sleeves and hem. She floated out from behind the screen and looked into the mirror. In the mirror was a girl there that couldn't have been herself. A beautiful lady that wasn't the poor daughter of a potter. No. The girl in the mirror was a noble woman in the Fire Nation court. She had to be. But Julie asked herself - am I like that?

Jin and another woman, who Julie was later introduced to as Saki, drifted up behind her and tied a black silk cloth tightly around her waist. They finished the sash in an elaborate bow at Julie's back. After straightening the bow, Saki grabbed a fistful of Julie's hair, making her jump. Tutting, the old woman grabbed a comb from the vanity table.

"What has happened to your hair, child? It looks like an elephant rat has made a nest there!"

The other women cackled and Julie managed to smile a little. They all reminded her of her grandmother. Saki wrenched a comb through Julie's knotted hair, and she winced. Feeling a few hairs disconnect with her scalp, she mumbled a few words to Jin, who was glad to take over for Saki. Jin's sister, Ren, grabbed a few bottles from the table and placed them into Julie's lap. She picked up a mud green bottle and read the label.

"Seaweed Paste - for shining hair!" She opened a bottle and peeked inside before taking a sniff. Ewww. The vile looking green paste inside smelled like a rotten platypus bear egg. No way was that going into her hair. Unfortunately, it seemed that Ren could read minds. She flashed Julie a smile filled with crooked teeth and grabbed the bottle of smelly mud stuff.

"NO!", cried Julie, reaching for the bottle, "That is SO not going into my hair!" But Ren dumped the entire bottle of mud stuff into her hand and rubbed it into Julie's hair. The other servants had to restrain Julie, who was kicking and screaming at Ren. The entire room began to stink like a mountain of rotten platypus bear eggs. Apparently the others were used to the smell - they gave no indication of the massive stink in the air. Julie gagged and a servant with shortly cropped hair opened a drawer and grabbed a bottle of what seemed like smelling salts. Or perfume. She waved it under Julie's nose and the gagging stopped.

Ren stood up with a smile on her face. "It is finished!" The other women scrambled to get other little bottles of makeup, that were, thankfully, in assorted colors of pink and purple instead of mud green. They poured more stuff into Julie's hair and, after a while, the stench of rotten eggs went away. Jin gave Julie's hair a few more brushes, and pinned it up into a bun with a golden hair pin. Ren fastened a stray strand of hair behind Julie's ear with a small red pin. Saki stroked a shimmery golden eye shadow onto Julie's eyelids and Jin fastened the engagement necklace around Julie's neck.

"You look beautiful," she said. Julie smiled. Jin was like her mother.

After cleaning up, they hustled Julie out the door and back into Zuko's bedroom. The prince was waiting there, staring out the window. He was decked out in full Fire Nation Prince regalia. Another crimson robe, full shoulder pad and armor.

Cleary, he had been waiting there a long time. Julie cleared her throat a little, shifting her weight from foot to foot. Zuko whipped around, and his mouth fell open. Literally. "You... look gre.. uh... beautiful", he managed to choke out.

Julie laughed. It was the first time she laughed in nearly a month, and Zuko thought it was the most beautiful sound in the world, like tinkling wind chimes in the spring.

"You look beautiful" he whispered, stepping forward until his chest was pushed against hers. Julie's heart was racing.

She leaned in closer until their lips were almost touching, and breathed, almost silently, "I love you, too". The kiss that followed was long and by the end, they were both breathless.

Zuko wrapped his arms around Julie, holding her tightly to his body. Her skin burned against his. Julie traced his scar gently, and he closed his eyes. That scar... It brought back so many memories. Mostly painful ones. Zuko shivered. He had just remembered that he had to confront his father. He had already been here three days. The fourth day was just starting, and hopefully he would make it through.

Julie looked up, cupping his chin in her hands and forcing him to look down at her. "What's wrong?" she asked, her eyes shining with concern.

"Did I hurt you?"

"No," Zuko replied, kissing her lightly on the forehead. "You're the most wonderful thing that has ever happened to me. I-it's my father. I have to talk to him."

Julie frowned for a second. His father. "Don't worry. We'll make it through this together. I promise."

Zuko smiled and he realized he was happy now. Happier than he ever was before. "I'm glad I have you back now. I missed you so much." He was happy to have his love back, to have a friend to talk to and be able to depend on. He had always thought he didn't need help. He could do everything by himself. But now, maybe that could change. Just maybe...

Zuko led Julie down the main hallway. "There's a room here where we usually stay..." he said awkwardly. By "they", he meant his sister, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. Mai... He really didn't want to talk to her, but he knew he had to. He had always known that they didn't belong together. He always loved Julie and he will always love her. Forever.

Mai was listening to another one of Ty Lee ramblings on how poofy clouds were, when she heard the rumbling of Zuko's voice outside the door. It surprised her, because for once, he sounded happy. She thought back to when they had been together. 'Nope. There really weren't many times when he sounded like that.' she thought. Then, she heard something else. Something that made her freeze. All at once, Ty Lee stopped chattering, and Azula turned to look at the door. It was the sound of light laughter.

Maybe because real laughter was something so seldom heard in the Fire Nation court, or maybe because it was the way the laugh sounded. It was so light that it seemed to float in the air. And it tinkled, like chimes in the spring breeze. It sounded like water and birds all at once. And other beautiful things they didn't even know the name for. But far from being enchanted, Mai was infuriated.

The door opened silently and Zuko walked in with a girl by his side. She was laughing that tinkly laugh, and Zuko was smiling. Really smiling. The girl was pretty, with long black hair in a bun and flowy red robes. But what stood out most were her eyes. They had a fierce glint to them, like a dragon-hawk, but at the same time they were kind and soft.

And her laugh just seemed to brighten the room a bit and bring it to life. Zuko led her over to the empty couch and they both settled down. But Mai was glaring daggers at the new girl. Zuko was her boyfriend! They had been together for a long time. And he had only just met her. How dare he...

"Who are you?" she demanded of the new girl, who had just begun talking with Ty Lee. Julie fixed her with a cold icy glare. Zuko jumped in.

"Mai, this is Julie. Julie, Mai." After giving Zuko a withering look, Mai resumed her staring match with Julie. Julie addressed Mai earlier question. "We're friends" she replied, nonchalantly. Ty Lee looked between the two girls nervously.

"Uhh... guys? How about we talk about this later?"

Mai looked at Zuko in disgust.

"Our relationship is over." she growled between gritted teeth.

"It already was over." Zuko replied.

Frustrated, Mai stomped off. But at the door, she spun around, hurling three daggers at Julie, who had just resumed her conversation with Ty Lee. She looked up at the quiet swishing sound of the daggers, and after a quick swipe of her sleeve, she had two of the weapons clutched in her hand. The third, unfortunately, buried itself into her arm a few inches below her wrist.

Zuko jumped up, letting out a blast of controlled fire that stopped an inch away from Mai's face. Even though it had not been the knife-thrower's intention to kill Julie, Zuko's face was contorted with fury. Azula, on the other hand, was almost laughing. To her, this was hilarious. "You- I can't believe- how dare you?" he yelled at Mai, who's face showed no emotion.

Ty Lee's eyes were as big as moon peaches. "Mai!" she said to her friend accusingly. "How could you do that?"

"I had to," the knife-thrower replied with ease, before gliding out the door.

Julie's eyes were burning with hatred as wrenched the knife out of her arm, wincing. Zuko rushed to help her.

"Are you ok?" he asked, his face showing concern and guilt. How could he let Mai do this?

"I'm so sorry," he whispered, ripping a piece of fabric off of his robes before Julie could stop him. "It's alright." Julie replied with a small smile, letting him wrap the piece of silk around her arm. "I'll be fine." Zuko, however, decided to take her to the infirmary. Ty Lee gave Julie a small wave and Azula, who had been silent during the entire incident, dipped her head, acknowledging Julie's existence.

Azula watched as her brother lead his friend out the door. The girl was strange. She didn't seem to be a bender, but she had an aura of power surrounding her. How did she grab those daggers? Azula knew that when Mai threw her daggers, they would hit their mark, yet this girl had just grabbed them out of the air. And then, Azula realized that she had seen this girl somewhere. Shaking her head, the princess tuned out Ty Lee's blabbering and thought about who this mysterious girl could be. Maybe she could get some servants to listen in to Zuko and the girl if she was intimidating enough.

**I know, this chapter was pretty weird. Blame the pile of Starburst wrappers on my desk. Grrs you stinky Starbursts. **

**Mai is now officially evil! Fluffiness and girlfriend wars shall ensue. Yayness! 3 chapters in one day. Am I amazing or am I amazing? I am on a roll! Sugar rush too… I knew I shouldn't have told my dad to buy all of those Starbursts. I keep telling myself I'm eating them for the wrappers (which I make bracelets out of). Hehe. I am one sad sad sugar-addicted girl. I have many long chapters planned out! Didn't this one just make you so happy?**

**Here's a thought – maybe you should review to make me a little happier! **

**Also, read the last part of my profile. The bottom part! I'm releasing a new story soon and I've put out the title: A.A.B.O.N.J.M. Isn't it great? And yes, it does stand for something. PM me with a crazy guess and I'll give you a character in a chapter! Use your imagination! START PMing NOW!**


	7. Chapter 7

**3,600 words! Don't you think you should review? I am writing long chapters! YAY! And I've only gotten 1 new review for my other three chapters :( You know how sad that makes me? Please review! I know, it seems like there's a plot-hole, but all shall be explained in meditation. Seriously.**

**It's going to get interesting from here. Do you think I should have included more fluff from their days in the palace? If you review, I might put up an extra chapter before this! **

**PLEASE! **

Disconnected images flashed one after the other in Julie's mind. A scorched statue of the Avatar Kyoshi overlooking a burning village. Zuko blasting Katara to the ground with fireball after fireball as Aang sat in the corner, his eyes and tattoos glowing.

She floated overhead as a battle raged on beneath her, Katara and Zuko both battling fiercely with elements. Julie knew that day. That was the cave at Ba Sing Se. She could still remember the sadness eating away at her heart when she saw a Zuko she did not know. Last of all was an image of Zuko and another girl, dressed in Earth Kingdom cloths. Their lips met, and Julie turned away before she saw Zuko pull away, his eyes pained.

Her eyes flashed open. Where was she? Frantic, Julie found the red silk sheets and the tapestries on the walls. She calmed down, forcing her heart to stop pounding. Her breath still came in short gasps. All of the memories came flooding back to her. Seeing Zuko, being captured, then forgiving him. How could she be so stupid?

It was his spell again, those eyes. Once Julie looked into them, she wasn't able to pull away. They were so mesmerizing. None of the boys she had ever met had eyes like that. They were so alive, so deep. So beautiful that she could smell cherry blossoms and feel the morning dew when she looked into them. Hear the trickle of a mountain stream. His arms around her. She was jerked out of her thoughts when she felt something on her back and her head against something warm and soft.

Blinking the sleep from her eyes, she found herself curled up in Zuko's arms, her head resting against his chest. She really was tempted to stay there, safe and warm with him, but her dreams kept her from that. He had really done those things. Brutally attacked the Avatar, endangered other innocent people who were only trying to survive this terrible war.

He was not the boy who had laughed with her, fed the turtleducks. The boys who had given her Takeshi, sat with her in the courtyard and been the only friend she had ever had. She had to remind herself that he was different now. He was not going to do anything about this war, but she was. So the only thing she could do was leave. Maybe she would track down Aang and join them. Teach him firebending. Do her part to help the world.

She slipped out of Zuko's arms, secretly hating herself. This was too hard. She knew what she had to do, why couldn't she just bring herself to do it? With a sigh, she put her dress on over her sleeping gown and sat down at the windows, looking over the sleepy city still blanketed in fog.

The whole world thought that the Fire Nation was horrible. In truth, not all of it was horrible. Growing up as the daughter of a potter, Julie hadn't really seen much of her home nation, but she knew enough to say that most people in the Fire Nation didn't like the war at all. It had torn families apart, the army recruiting more and more firebenders. Her grandfather had been taken when she was only six or seven years old.

In a few years, they might have even found her and dragged her away to guard a prison filled with people who had only been trying to defend themselves. The tears came, feeling like pieces of ice on her cheeks. She missed her parents. She so desperately wanted to go see them, but that would be risky. What if someone followed her out of the palace?

The scar on her wrist from Mai's dagger throbbed painfully. That had only happened two days ago. Three nights ago, Zuko snuck her out of prison. The guards were going berserk trying to find the girl who had disappeared. No one had ever suspected the Crown Prince of sneaking her out. Now, it was time to leave.

The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon when Zuko woke up. The fire within him burned with energy. He would start training again today.

He lay in bed, thinking about the day ahead of him, how different it would be, now that he had a friend who really truly understood him. It was only after a while that he noticed Julie was gone. Sitting up quietly, he found her, a dark figure, sitting by the window. She was looking out at the pale pink sky, no doubt feeling the life and energy the sun brought with it. He stood up and walked over to her. Something glistened on her cheek. She was crying?

"Julie..?"

He tried to put his arm around her, but she scooted away until her arm was pressed against the cold glass. Her eyes were blazing with an unusual anger, but there was uncertainty, too. She must be thinking about his past again. Silently, Zuko cursed himself.

He had been a stupid boy trying to get the love that he would never receive. Why couldn't he have just realized that he would never get his honor from his father and just been… a good guy? Now the girl he loved hated him all because he wanted the crown. But it was rightfully his, right? He was the crown prince, after all.

"Don't hate me, Julie. Please."

She looked away. Looked back over the city that woke with the sun. She did feel more powerful now that there was light. In fact, she felt more powerful than she ever had. She was leaving the palace today, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop her.

"I leaving, Zuko."

There was no need for explanation. He already knew why. Or at least he should. Julie didn't care how sad or heartbroken he was. He was a monster.

She stood up to go, tears slipping out from her eyes. She was not going to cry. She was not weak.

As she blindly grabbed a cloak, a sob tore from her throat. The tears flowed freely, falling faster and faster.

Zuko found himself crying along with her. Why? Why did this have to happen? Hadn't he suffered enough already? Why did he have to lose someone he loved again? It was all his fault. Stupid stupid him.

Julie ran out the door, throwing the cloak around her. She looked back though, just outside the door. Zuko had his head buried in his hands, sobs racking his body. As much as it pained her, she looked away. _No. I do not love him. _But even she knew that those were all lies.

Zuko was getting angry again. It always happened like this. Pain, sadness, frustration, anger. They circled each other just like Tui and La had at the North Pole. He blasted the tapestries with fire. Then the carpet and the bed.

When the sun rose high into the sky, the servants found him on his knees, sobbing in the middle of a burning room.

Julie sprinted through the halls, tears streaming down her face, her hair wild. So far so good, no servants yet. It was still early. The people of the Fire Nation rose with the sun. It was barely dawn right now.

But she was making a racket and sooner or later, someone would find her. She stopped, willing herself to calm down, slowing her ragged breath. _Breath in, breath out_. What was her plan? She didn't have a plan. It was only an hour or two ago that she realized she had to leave.

She stood in front of a window, looking at her reflection. She looked like an escaped mental patient. Her hair was sticking up all over the place; her eyes were wild and confused. She needed to calm down.

After finding an empty room, no doubt one of the spare guest rooms, Julie sat down in the lotus position. She arranged a circle of fire in the air around her, and began to meditate. _Breath in, breath out._ The flames rose and fell with her breaths. She felt all of her confusion slip away, burned to ashes from the fires around her. Fire was destruction, but it was also life. It was alive. And it was a beautiful thing. Not unlike water. You can guide fire, just as a Waterbender guides water. But first you have to clear your mind. Fire takes advantage of any weakness, and as its guide, you can show none of it.

Julie remembered one particular spring day many years ago. She was sitting in the courtyard with her Grandfather Jeong. He was teaching her about proper firebending. Not the type that soldiers used for war. He spoke of the beautiful type of firebending that the dragons and ancient Sun Warriors used. Where fire was like a serpent that could swirl and coil and dance in the air. That was the pure form of firebending.

She mastered it with ease. Grandpa Jeong was always pleased with her progress. He came around every moon, bringing with him tales of magnificent dragons that used to rule the land. That was, of course, before the Fire Nation came around.

In fact, her grandfather had been in the middle of teaching her a new type of bending when the soldiers took him away. The last night she was with him, he spoke of fire in places one would never imagine. Fire within people and fire in the air. Julie had listened, wide-eyed next to the lotus pond when Grandpa Jeong told her about a secret type of firebending only the masters knew about. There was fire everywhere, in everything that was alive – people, animals, and the air. If you could control these slivers of fire, you would become more powerful than any other firebender. He called it Heatbending.

The next day, Julie was just waking up when she heard shouts from the courtyard. She knew that Grandpa Jeong always went there for his morning bending and meditation, but she didn't think of that then. She jumped out of bed and raced to the garden, but the only people there were her parents. Her mother was sobbing on the ground, and her father watched helplessly as a crowd of soldiers disappeared down the lonely street.

She had been too late. They had taken Grandpa Jeong.

After that, she didn't practice in the courtyard much. Even though the recruiting age was 18 for Fire Nation girls, there was no telling what might happen. The day that Zuko had found her was a mistake. She had been careless. And at first, when she sensed another person behind the plants, she had been scared to death. But she didn't show it. That would be letting your enemy know you. That might prove fatal.

Of course, she realized that the fire was small, so it could have only been a kid. A boy about her age. And when he came out and she got to know him, she liked him. He was nice and funny, and she thought he might have liked her, too.

It was one of those crazy thoughts, but she was sure after a few days that he had been staring at her. With those gold eyes. Even seven years ago, she loved those gold eyes. They reminded her of leaves in the harvest season. They were like the last golden leaves on a bare tree, dancing, refusing to let go.

It was only after almost a moon that he told her who he truly was. She was shocked. So shocked that she could have died. He was the prince. The prince! She liked the prince of the entire Fire Nation!

And he might have liked her too…

But at first she was afraid, afraid that he wouldn't like a common girl. But he did, and although at first it was awkward and scary, she realized that he really did like her. And she found herself falling deeper into his eyes.

Three moons before his banishment in the summer seasons, they were betrothed. Not officially – Julie's parents knew nothing about their love. They thought that she was meeting a boy named Lee. But it was official enough with Zuko being the prince and all, and they were going to be married when Julie turned 16. That was the marrying age in the Fire Nation.

But then Zuko was banished. He was supposed to meet her one day, but he never showed up. All Julie found was a wilting fire lily on her doorstep.

It was only after two weeks of worry that she heard the gossip in the market. Zuko had been banished. He lost it all – his throne, his family, his own father didn't want him. He had been set to capture the Avatar, an impossible task. He was never coming back.

She learned to live with it. It hurt so much that he didn't even tell her; maybe he was afraid it would hurt? It hurt more to not know where he was, not know whether he would be okay. _But he did love me_, she would tell herself. He will come back and there will be a happily ever after.

Even though her heart was in pieces, Julie learned to push it all aside. Grandfather Jeong said that grief and shame would weigh you down. So she pushed it aside and helped her parents around the house. She continued her firebending, and she became so good at it that she had another crazy thought. She became the Flame Dancer.

At first, she only performed in the market square, but news spread. It hadn't been her intention to perform so much, but people were just so amazed by her special form of bending and she was just so happy.

She was taken to perform at the parties of noblemen, and everyone watched, enchanted, as the girl danced and twirled ribbons of fire. They loved her little dragon snake. No one had ever seen anything like it.

It helped her forget about Zuko. Dancing made her concentrate on the fire, and only the fire.

She remembered the heatbending many moons after the start of her dancing. At first, it was unfamiliar, scary, even, to reach out to the fire in the air. It was so different from the fires that fluttered at her fingertips. This fire was more subtle, softer.

Julie was able to move the fire in the air, making one place warm, and the other cold. She could extinguish the fire completely, turning a warm room into a freezing prison. Having that kind of power was frightening, especially for a firebender so sensitive to the cold. She wouldn't use it much.

Then, she started to turn to the fire inside of her. Mentally reaching in, feeling it burn within her. She found that she could make the fire strong or weak, making herself stronger or more vulnerable.

The first time she went to the marketplace after feeling her fire, she immediately felt sick. There were so many flames burning in such a small place. Jostling against each other, bumping, blazing. It took her a while to get used to it. But from then on, she was able to sense another person's presence close by.

Takeshi helped. He was her constant companion, and when he wasn't dancing with Julie up on stage, he was coiled around her wrist as she searched the marketplace for vegetables, or settled comfortably around her shoulders at home.

If only things were simple again. Maybe a boring life safe at home was better than this confusion and pain Julie had found here at the palace with Zuko. She knew what she had to do now. She was getting out of the palace, no matter how hard that would be.

Wait. What was that noise in the room?

Julie squinted out from under lowered eyelids. Surrounding her were 15 Fire Nation guards, all in bending stance. They must have found her while she was meditating. All well. This wasn't going to be too hard.

She opened her eyes fully, hoping that her hair was tamer now. The guard directly in front of her demanded, "Who are you and what are you doing in Lady Mai's private quarters?"

Oops. Lady Mai? That would explain the painting of Zuko stuck full of daggers. In her haste, she hadn't bothered to actually look at the room she sat down in. Time to go.

"I'm waiting for an answer…" said the guard.

Julie smirked. She felt refreshed now. Meditating could do wonders for people. She thrust out her hand and felt the fires burning within the guards. Taking a deep breath, she put them all out. 15 bodies fell to the floor, all out cold. She waited eight seconds before allowing the fires to burn again. These men would be unconscious for another fifteen minutes or so. They would be without bending for a while longer. The cold was not good for firebenders.

She raced out of the room, making sure to close the doors behind her. Throwing the hood of the cloak over her head, she began to make her way down the hall.

Julie stopped in her tracks when she smelled something that sent shivers down her spine. Cinnamon and a slight smoky smell. Zuko smelled like that all the time.

Zuko.

She spun around, ready to extinguish his fire, too. Whatever it took to get out of this palace alive.

But he wasn't there. The hallway was empty save for the squares of sunlight on the plush carpet.

She was puzzled. Where had that smell come from? Unless she was slowly going mad…

Looking down, she found herself in robes at least three sizes too big. So she had grabbed Zuko's robe on her sprint out. How nice.

A part of her longed to bury into the soft silk. He had worn this. It felt strangely comforting to have something he had touched.

Of course, she had to remind herself that she didn't care. _He's a monster_, she told herself again and again.

_Monster, monster, monster._

There was some type of thing going on down the hall. She could hear yelling and something crackling. Fire. Smoke floated down the hall. With a start, she realized that it was coming from where Zuko's room was.

What happened? Horrible thoughts flew through her mind.

Assassination attempt.

Bending accident.

Suicide.

The last one scared her most of all. He had been sad when she left, but he wouldn't _really_ do that, would he? She would just check, to make sure. He was not going to die because of her. But what if she was caught? They would throw her into prison. Again. Julie almost screamed out in frustration. This was too hard! She wanted to care, but she couldn't. Not if she wanted to leave the palace as quickly as possible.

The sun was already high in the sky. The palace guards would definitely be awake and alert. Darn.

Just then, a gaggle of servants walked past, each carrying a bucket of water. It was awkward business, going slowly so that the water wouldn't slosh out, but going fast enough to get… well wherever they were going. Luckily, she dove behind a curtain just in time and they passed her. But a straggling servant noticed her feet peeking out.

"What are you doing?" he asked, puzzled.

_Thump_.

Out went his fire.

She waited until the other bucket carrying servants disappeared in the smoke before shaking the servant awake. He was going to answer some questions for her.

"What happened in Prince Zuko's room?"

The servant was still groggy, but Julie was insistent.

"I don't know, miss. I went there in the morning, and he was just on the floor, crying. His whole room was on fire. We don't know what happened. Maybe it has something to do with the strange girl he was with? She disappeared."

The servant seemed to just notice something. Right in front of him was a very strange girl. He had just started to say something, to yell for help maybe, when he fell unconscious again.

She got up and was about to run in the direction of what she thought was the exit when a pair of hands grabbed her wrists.

"You came back…?"

**Grandpa Jeong, huh? Anyone care to guess who that is? Cheesie, I know, but I love that guy! Review! You guys are making me sooo saddddd :( **

**Gotta love that cliffhanger, though. I know, it's now as good as Lone Fairytale's cliffies, but she's in a totally different league. I suck at them. **

**Like I said before, I'm posting a new set of stories soon (read bottom of my profile for details). Guess what the title stands for and you'll get a character! Please? PMs and reviews just make me so happy. So do Starbursts! And shopping! And a lot of other things that I bet you guys don't care for. Namely, a glass chick named Peas. Curious? READ MY PROFILE! Warning: Does contain rants and random thoughts. **

**REVIEW! Suggestions are welcome and have an 80% chance of being used. Just cuz I'm awesome and open-minded like that. **


	8. Chapter 8

**I think you guys will like this chapter :) It took me and my minions a long time to decide what to write. To leave or not to leave, that is the question. **

_"You came back…?"_

Just those three words by Julie's heart ache. Add in the look on Zuko's face and his smoldering gold eyes burning into hers, and well, she could have fainted right then and there. But she didn't. Instead, she stood there, petrified, staring at Zuko.

His eyes were red from crying, and his shirt was slightly singed.

Zuko had let go of her wrists now, but neither of them were saying anything. Julie felt everything bubble up inside her again. What was wrong with her? She felt like crying every other minute. There was too much going on. She wanted to do the right thing and help Aang, but a part of her still loved Zuko. And cared. She just found him again, she didn't want to leave. Not yet. But she had to. Or at least she thought she did…

The fire still raged on down the hall, but both were oblivious to the noise. In their world, all was silent. A very awkward silence.

"Julie…?"

She took a step forward and almost collapsed. Zuko caught her, and she pressed her face into his shoulder, sobbing.

"I don't know, Zuko. I really don't know."  
All of the confusion inside her, the war between what she thought was right, and what she really wanted had taken its toll. She cried until there were no more tears left to cry, and Zuko stayed with her the entire time, hugging her tightly. Even if she was leaving, he was going to help her leave. As long as she was safe…

It was while until Julie finally stopped crying. Zuko's shoulder was soaked, and she looked up at him. He raised a hand and wiped away her tears.

"So I guess this means you're staying?", he asked hesitantly.

Julie laughed, and hugged him back.

"Yes, I supposed it does, doesn't it?"

**Ahhh… I love this chapter. Didn't that just make you so happy? I think I'm making Julie cry too much though… She's just emotional. **

**It was short though…**

**I watched **_**Howl's Moving Castle**_** today! I LOVE HOWL! True, he looks like a girl, but that doesn't mean I can't like his blue eyes at the beginning! *sigh* Zuko or Howl?**

**Anyways… hope you liked it! **

**The next chapter shall be fluffy and very cute. Also slightly angst-y, but that applies to every chapter. Oh, almost forgot – it will be LONG! YAYS!**

**HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY! **

**Review!**


End file.
